Chicago wants to win, not develop so it makes sense to send down the really raw prospects to the K-wings so they aren't in the press box every night. I imagine this will be the last year of our Chicago affiliation.

Mallet has worked his way up to the top line in Kalamazoo - if he was up in Chicago, he'd be looking at 3rd line minutes at best... I think it'll be better if he gains confidence as a scoring power forward in Kalamazoo right now.

Somehow I think Mallet will make it to the NHL - probably bottom 6, but a player that can hit, fight, and score a little. The Canucks could definitely use a player like that.

What's up with Connaughton this year? Seems like he took a step forward last year, but haven't heard much about him (positive or negative) this year. Is it the system he is playing? Or has his progression plateaued this year... Anyone know?

Tanti09 wrote:What's up with Connaughton this year? Seems like he took a step forward last year, but haven't heard much about him (positive or negative) this year. Is it the system he is playing? Or has his progression plateaued this year... Anyone know?

I watched most of the Wolves games before the lockout, and Connauton definitely has great offensive instincts... but he doesn't seem to be as dedicated to shutting opponents down in his own zone. It's not that he's cheating, really, but I saw him outmuscled in front of his own net, and sometimes just plain out of position.

His contract is up at the end of the season, and I'm not sure what the Canucks will do - he still has potential, but they have other defensemen that they may want to focus on developing (Corrado, Price, Tommernes, Andersson, McNally, McEneny, Hutton, Polasek)

I get the feeling that Sauve may also be stalled in his development (currently in ECHL).